In his post, “7 Reasons America Has Not Been Reached for Christ,” I believe Greg Stier has some very important things for the church to
hear and fix. In every point he is right
about our neglect. I would simply add
one more that might be a bit more conceptual but crucial nonetheless – We don’t
know the Gospel anymore.
Stier mentions that we are ashamed of the Gospel and that
church leaders are no longer leading the cause of spreading the good news, and
he is right. In addition I believe a
growing number of Christians (possibly an alarmingly large percentage of them?)
no longer truly believe Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. In other words it is quite possible that
American Christians have lost their urgency to proclaim the Gospel because they
no longer think it is necessary to do so.
They have become soft religious relativists.
I taught ethics on the college level for both a community
college (younger students), and at a university adult education extension and I
found both demographics struggled with making arguments for the rightness or
wrongness of ethical points of view, not to mention the inherent exclusivity of
truth itself. And as a pastor for going
on 20 years now, I’m not so sure I can label “them” as the only relativists out there.
A Christian does not know the Gospel when they do not believe
it is the only message of good news and reconciliation between the Creator and
his creation. A believer does not have a
solid intellectual grasp on their faith if they are willing to believe that
other religions are basically the same, and in so doing, neglect the urgent
task of being ambassadors for Christ.
In addition to his 7 Reasons, could it also be the case
that American Christians are simply losing their grasp on several of the
essential tenants of the faith?
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